I continually hear about the issue with funding in Public Schools, but use your imagination just for one minute to explore the idea of how much $$$ would be available if we were not paying testing vendors MILLIONS/BILLIONS for excessive and unnecessary high-stakes testing.
Now also imagine how much learning can be accomplished if test-prep gets thrown out the window?!
Imagine the child that does not get removed from class or specials SEVERAL times to take another test?!
Imagine the child that can learn and explore, taking their time and NOT feel rushed or anxious. On the other hand, now imagine that same exact child that must complete as many as possible in less than 2 minutes or you FAIL?!
Is funding what creates learning? Can we ONLY teach the "whole child" with "enough" money?
Please Sir, I beg you as a taxpaying citizen (which I learned....by the way taxpayer money makes up 78% of a public school's budget) to allow my child and their learning be a PRIORITY not more funding and certainly not your bogus A-F grade based on test scores.
My child is 8, she can not grasp abstract concepts like algebra or probability, her brain is not developed to do so. Her prefrontal cortex isn't even developed yet!!! Inferencing, complex informational text and ZILLIONS of benchmark assessments are NOT what makes her wheels spin and lights go off! Pounding her harder doesn't either. In fact, she shuts down. She certainly doesn't have enough life experience to form an argumentative opinion because that constitutes concrete knowledge and information first. She already turned her brain completely off 3 weeks ago as soon as she FAILED with a 60% that introductory assignment of associative/commutative properties and algebraic expressions. She hasn't even masted double or triple digit subtraction yet. Her mind is spinning trying to keep up with learning fractions, divisions, multiplication, algebra, probability, and triple digit subtraction all in the same day!!! School is EVERYTHING to my child, she's a natural learner and she wants to master skills and understand concepts desperately. She is a pleaser and a perfectionist.
http://www.projectlearnet.org/tutorials/concrete_vs_abstract_thinking.html
But don't worry.....please continue down this common core trail...I'd hate for you to lose your NCLB waiver or an additional $400,000 or whatever in additional federal funding.
Don't mind me I'll continue to pick my children up and dry their tears of frustration and confusion, we'll spend two hours on these idiotic CC math problems that should take and can be solved in 10 seconds or less, and I will continue to overcompensate and assure my child they will be just fine even though they got the highest F-AILING grade (2 out of 25) correct on the 4th grade microbiology, human physiology, or world geography test because I'd hate for your district to lose out on all that additional bribe money!!! Who needs college and career when your just praying your child can make it through 4th grade?! SERIOUSLY!!
Forget the human beings being abused and tortured, the teachers losing hair, sleep and begging for mercy attempting to teach this garbage.
Because I can assure you EVERY teacher could easily teach students important life lessons and ALL of the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic with something as simple as table salt, crayons/markers, paper, pencils and a cookie sheet.
With ALL due respect Sir, .............FUNDING is not the issue!!!
STOP COMMON CORE
Friday, November 7, 2014
Why The Best Teachers DON'T Give Tests!!!
As a parent it is certainly a daily challenge to recognize true genuine education and valuable learning. It becomes an even bigger challenge when you as a parent become awakened to the policies, unfunded mandates, and BILLION dollar profit empires wreaking havoc on public schools everywhere. I am a believer in public education because I am a product of one. I was molded and shaped by MANY amazing teachers, principals, coaches and even peers. It’s different nowadays; call me old-fashioned but a traditional clear cut education…a free and appropriate public education EVERY child deserves is hard to come by especially without a fight, without being THAT parent, the “non-conformist.”
Here’s my point. I would LOVE to ask every teacher out there ONE question!
From day 1 when that child walks through your door to the very last day of school, what 3-5 things do you want every student to know/learn and take away from your class? Basically, what is your purpose for teaching? What are the most important things each child should walk away with, what are the priorities?
I would guarantee beyond a shadow of a doubt TEST SCORE is not found ANYWHERE in the top 3-5. So why is practically every teacher all across our nation spending the majority of the entire academic year (180 days) teaching test prep? How much valuable time is being wasted on simply passing a test, aka choosing the correct answer? The BILLION dollar empires (lobby groups and corporate reformers FOR PROFIT) are stealing every teacher’s most valuable gift and they don’t even realize it!!
Basically schools and classrooms everywhere are painting the drywall, and hanging pictures on the wall but the foundation has not been poured yet! WHY? Why are children not mastering the basics and why has testing trumped the real purpose for teaching and learning in the first place? Do you know how much profit is made in the testing industry alone? Standardized (high-stakes) testing is a $350-$450 BILLION dollar industry!!!
Schools are no longer centered on the students, teachers are not being trained to teach but to facilitate, and the education reform system has been established to generate profit.
The article below explains in great detail WHY THE BEST TEACHERS DON’T GIVE TESTS!!!
And here is a great article about the timeline of corporate education reform, but I certainly wouldn’t recommend reading it because being awake means your child’s education becomes a bigger challenge and who really wants to be THAT parent?!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/02/private-firms-eyeing-prof_n_1732856.html
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